Through the use of mobile devices and computers, technology in smart buildings links building operations and streamlines activities such as monitoring building temperature, security, and maintenance. This enables commercial property owners and facility managers to improve operational efficiencies and cost control.
According to MarketsandMarkets, the smart building market will be worth nearly US$109 billion by 2028. One of the major drivers of smart building growth is the rising adoption of IoT-enabled building operations and management solutions. As technology becomes more sophisticated and the number of smart building devices, applications, and solution providers proliferates, choosing the right facility/building operations solution is crucial for business owners to maximize the benefits of technology investments.
We at IQnext are often asked by our customers how the Internet of Things (IoT) technologies can add value to their operations and how the integration of these disciplines can augment their building operations and performance.
Apart from a variety of reasons and benefits, we often highlight three important areas that can impact efficient building performance using IoT-based systems:
#1 : IoT offers more functionality using a centralized approach
Traditional building infrastructures such as electrical, gas, water, and environmental control systems are costly to acquire and install. Integrating IoT does not imply to completely removal and replace of such systems. Instead, IoT offers a complementary layer of enhanced functionality through the deployment of a much lighter, scalable physical infrastructure for a centrlaized management. Further, unlike conventional BMS, where the hardware-software ecosystem is designed to lock in the customer, IoT-based system provide the opportunity for building & facility owners, and operators to be able to replace the IoT vendors with ease.
#2 : IoT provides improved and seamless access to contextual building data to various stakeholders
Nowadays, data is regarded as the indispensable element in the management of commercial buildings. IoT allows you to collect large amounts of operational data and to quickly analyse that data to enhance all building functions.
For building and facility owners, the initial acquisition costs of the IoT devices needed to gather critical data represents a low initial investment (Capex). However, unlike conventional BMS, the data for the IoT system is processed at the cloud level. In other words, the IoT solution provider can simply provide applications for relevant stakeholders using the common data available.
# 3 : Technical scalability
Traditional BMS systems are hardware-driven, desktop-based legacy systems. This means that every time a new update or enhancement is to be made, the desktop system has to be updated or a new program has to be written to drive a simple use case, which may have not been planned at the time of initial deployment. On the other hand, IoT system architecture is designed to work for a bottom-up approach. This means that anytime during the course of the building/facility lifecycle a new applications is available, it is simply available to the customer the next time they log-in to the web or mobile applications.
As the world becomes increasingly focused on sustainability and energy efficiency, IoT will play a critical role in transforming buildings into smarter, more sustainable and comfortable spaces for people to live and work in. With the continued development of IoT technologies and their integration into smart building systems, we can expect to see even greater advancements in the way buildings operate in the future.
To know more about the conventional BMS vs IoT, refer to our e-book here.
At IQnext by using a software-first approach, we are fully committed to making buildings continuously efficient & sustainable.
